Back in the '80s, Honda thought there was luxurious money to be made in the luxury car market. So it committed a huge chunk of its treasure to developing its new Acura luxury line and ignored the burgeoning U.S. appetite for truck-based vehicles such as the minivan and sport utility.
Its luxury cars never did generate the kind of U.S. sales success Honda had envisioned. But consumer demand for minis, sport utes and pickups continued to grow like a teenage Shawn Bradley.By 1993, the truck-based vehicles were accounting for nearly 40 percent of the American Pie - and Honda still had nothing in the cupboard for its truck-hungry dealers.
Clearly, the usually savvy Japanese automaker had been caught with its tailgate down.
Belatedly, a red-faced Honda has been taking steps to close the gate and stop the truck-sales leakage at its dealerships. It fielded a compact sport utility called the Passport earlier this year and is readying a minivan based on the Accord platform for introduction next spring.
The Passport was a quick, easy way to deal with Honda's truck paucity because the company didn't have to design and build it. It simply made a deal with Isuzu to put Honda Passport badges on some of the Isuzu Rodeo sport utes assembled at the Isuzu-Subaru joint-venture plant in Lafayette, Ind. (Truckless Subaru had wanted a re-badged Rodeo, too. But since Subaru is a teeny presence and Honda has a large dealer network, it really wasn't much of a contest.)
Happily for Honda, its Passport model has been selling quite well. I would guess that part of that has to do with the fact that it has Honda's name on it. And, after driving one, I would guess that another part of it has to do with the fact that this is a pretty darn good compact sport utility. The top-of-the-line EX model I tested was exceptionally quiet, comfortable and lively.
Still, the sales are somewhat surprising because the Passport doesn't have an air bag.
Derived from Isuzu's compact pickup platform, the four-door Passport is a solid, ruggedly handsome critter that looks as though it is ready to do some business in the bush. And, indeed, it is, given its full eight inches of ground clearance and the serviceable part-time four-wheel-drive system employed in most Passports.
The under-$20,000 models do not have four-wheel drive. They are rear-drivers powered by a 2.6-liter four that develops a meager 120 horsepower.
The more expensive Passports, the LX ($21,570) and the EX ($24,140), are equipped with both 4wd and a more powerful 3.2-liter, 175-horsepower V-6.
One of the most impressive elements of my week with a loaded Passport EX was its quietness. Wind and tire noise were low for a vehicle of this type, and the body was rattle-free, despite the fact that it had had 10,000 miles in which to loosen up.
I also liked the tester's smooth, willing V-6 and silky manual five-speed transmission. The high-winding 24-valve engine makes this one of the liveliest, most fun-to-drive sport utes I've been in. Unfortunately, it also makes it one of the thirstiest. The test vehicle had EPA mileage ratings of 16 city and 19 highway. I got a miserable 12.7 miles per gallon in predominantly city driving. Presumably, things would have gotten even worse with the optional four-speed automatic.
The EX handled nicely and got stopped in adequate time through the good offices of its four-wheel disc brakes and rear-wheel anti-lock-braking system.
The tester's bucket seats were comfortable enough, as was its ride. The interior was quite roomy and serviceable.
The instruments and controls on the typically clunky Isuzu dash were accessibly placed. There was plenty of legroom in the back seat, and a generous rear cargo area was permitted by the outside mounting of the spare tire.
The Passport's fit and finish were good inside and out. The only glitch in the test vehicle was the malfunctioning power outside mirrors.